Curiosities of ancient Rome

Atrium with preserved compluvium (“hole” in the ceiling) and impluvium (stone rainwater tank in which water was collected and collected in a cistern). The place is located in domus called the so-called Casa del Tramezzo di Legno Insula III in Herculaneum.

External steps of the Roman amphitheatre in Pompeii. The building could accommodate up to 12,000 spectators (some give the number of 20,000), so it was necessary to provide an appropriate way to leave the building. In the arena, mainly gladiators and wild animals fights took place. The amphitheatre was “buried” as a result of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

Roman dark blue vase with white reliefs. The object was found in 1837 in a burial chamber in Pompeii.

Roman mosaic showing Hercules in a crown of laurel leaves. The hero lies naked on the skin of a Nemean lion. He holds kantharos (a kind of Greek drinking vessel) in his hand and his club lies beside it. The object is made of glass, marble and calcite. Artifact dated to the 3rd-4th century CE.

A wonderful Roman necklace made of gold and carnelian. Object dated to the 2nd century CE.

Roman fresco with cubiculum (bedroom) in the Villa of the Mysteries in Pompeii. The fresco is an example of the so-called Pompeian Second style.

Roman fresco showing a glass vessel with pomegranates and apples. The object is from Villa Poppaea in Oplontis, at Pompeii.

Remains of a Roman road in ancient Tarsus (Turkey). The road was discovered by accident in 1993, during construction works.

Roman marble bust of a young man. Scientists suspect that it is a funeral portrait, intended to show the deceased in a heroic and dignified manner. The marble from which the object was made, was obtained near Aphrodisias, in ancient Caria (present-day Western Turkey).